1 day ecotourism workshop

Today is a 1 day ecotourism workshop held at Kampung Sungai Melayu focusing on topic of bird watching. This ecotourism workshop is organized by Iskandar Region Development Authority IRDA and Malaysia Nature Society Johor branch chairman and its members are invited to host the workshop. It is intended to educate, facilitate and promote the ecotourism to Malaysia Nature Guide and improve Johor tourism in ecotourism sector.

1 day ecotourism workshop

Early 8.30am, I reach the IRDA office at Jalan Skudai Kiri to gather there. Most of the participants already inside the IRDA office. We depart at 9.10am to the workshop venue, Kampung Sungai Melayu, Nusajaya. Kg Sungai Melayu is a fisherman village. Most of the villager make a living through the wealth resources of Sungai Melayu river. There are kelong scatter along the Sungai Melayu river. We reach there and welcome by villagers there. We have our breakfast there before start our ecotourism workshop for birds watching.

bird watching

Our ecotourism workshop is focus on bird watching, speech given by Vincent Chow. Vincent is an expert in birds area for over few 10 years and did published his own book about birds. We are taught about how to differentiate birds. For bird identification, the first thing we need to learn is to know the name of birds body part. With this knowledge, then we able to read the books related to birds so that we recognized birds name and its features and characteristics.

Kampung Sungai Melayu river cruise

The combination of size and shape is one of the most powerful tools to bird identification. Though we may be drawn to watching birds because of birds wonderful color or fascinating behavior, when it comes to bird identification, size and shape are the first places of information we should examine.  The first steps are to learn typical bird silhouettes, find reliable ways to gauge the size of a bird, and notice differences in the telltale parts of a bird such as the bill, wings, and tail.

Fisherman catching fish

We have our lunch around 1pm. Mussel, prawn, curry flavor fish, fried egg and vegetable dish are served. All the seafood ingredients are fresh because all of them are either caught or breed by the villager. After enjoying our lunch, we ride on the boat for Sungai Melayu river cruises. Each motor equipped boat carried 2 visitors. Each visitor wear life jacket before ride onto the boat. Due to under hot sun and not covered, the seat is really very hot.

Kelong

We enjoy 1 hour river cruises along the Sungai Melayu river. At one side we do able to see Horizon Hills 3 storey house residential estate and at the other side of the river cruise we reach to places whereby we able to see the Country Garden Danga Bay project and land reclamation from far. Along the river cruise, we observe the birds flying on the sky, resting on the mangrove mudflats, and we see kelong scatter along the Sungai Melayu river. Some kelong are are left empty, some kelong have fisherman inside, some kelong become fisherman stopover and some kelong used to breed mussel. I do see a kelong with scarecrow.

Kelong with scarecrow

According to Vincent, mussel is sensitive and attracted to blue color. That’s why the rope used to breed mussel is blue color. Blue color is like a magnet to attract mussel stick to the blue rope. Due to no binocular given to me, I only manage to see the birds along the Sungai Melayu with bare eye.

Mussel breeding

We return back to Kampung Sungai Melayu workshop and have tea break refreshment. After that, we continue with 45 minutes of Questions and Answers session. Some senior nature guide did ask some insightful question related to bird watching and Kampung Sungai Melayu as ecotourism destination. We also suggested for further learning workshop to be organized by IRDA. We ended our 1 day ecotourism workshop at 5.30pm. After group photo, we proceed to bus and go back to IRDA office.

Fisherman living at kelong

WHAT IS ECOTOURISM?

The Nature Conservancy adopts the definition articulated by the World Conservation Union (IUCN):

"Environmentally responsible travel to natural areas, in order to enjoy and appreciate nature (and accompanying cultural features, both past and present) that promote conservation, have a low visitor impact and provide for beneficially active socio-economic involvement of local peoples."

Most tourism in natural areas today is not ecotourism and is not, therefore, sustainable tourism. Ecotourism is distinguished by its emphasis on conservation, education, traveler responsibility and active community participation. Specifically, ecotourism possesses the following characteristics:

• Conscientious, low-impact visitor behavior
• Sensitivity towards, and appreciation of, local cultures and biodiversity
• Support for local conservation efforts
• Sustainable benefits to local communities
• Local participation in decision-making
• Educational components for both the traveler and local communities

Increased tourism to sensitive natural areas without appropriate planning and management can threaten the integrity of ecosystems and local cultures. The increase of visitors to ecologically sensitive areas can lead to significant environmental degradation. Likewise, local communities and indigenous cultures can be harmed in numerous ways by an influx of foreign visitors and wealth. Additionally, fluctuations in climate, currency exchange rates, and political and social conditions can make over-dependence upon tourism a risky business.

However, this same growth creates significant opportunities for both conservation and local communities. Ecotourism can provide much-needed revenues for the protection of national parks and other natural areas -- revenues that might not be available from other sources.

Additionally, ecotourism can provide a viable economic development alternative for local communities with few other income-generating options. Moreover, ecotourism can increase the level of education and activism among travelers, making them more enthusiastic and effective agents of conservation.

4th job as tourist guide - 3 days 2 nights Genting Night

Today is the fourth job as tourist guide, and it is my first tourist guide job that need to overnight at the places of visit. Such overnight tourist guide job is the tour I yearning for, although it is not an actual commentary tour. This 3 days 2 nights Genting job is a big group comprising of 30 buses and over 900 Singapore tourists. All the tourists guide gather at the Sultan Abu Bakar Complex – Malaysia Second Link Customs early for briefing. Due to overnight, I brought Melilea organic powder and bread to standby, and medicine like panadol and stomach ache medicine.

All the tourists guide arrange the buses at the Gelang Patah R&R to wait for order before drive to Sultan Abu Bakar Complex – Malaysia Second Link Customs to avoid congestion of the customs. Singapore tourists start to reach at 7.30am. Due to the bus plate number identical for the four digits, it causes some mess and tourists board to wrong bus. We departed to Genting Highlands around 8.30am. There are tour leader in the group. We reach Yong Peng Fuhua Restaurant for our breakfast at 10am. After breakfast, we go to nearby native food shop Yoyo and honey shop to let Singapore tourists to visit and purchase the local products. After that, we continue our journey. The journey to the Genting Highlands is followed by the heavy rain along the road. Top of our bus window cover is dripping water. Fortunately there are 2 empty seats available for them to swap their seats to avoid the dripping water from heavy rain.

We reach Seremban R&R (Rest & Repair) around 1.30pm. We have our stopover there for 30 minutes for break and lunch. Due to most of the Singapore tourists are elderly, the food sold there are not suitable for them. They buy the snacks over there to fill up the stomach temporarily. About 2.10pm, I took a big umbrella from bus to fetch them back to the bus and then continue our journey. In the bus, I start to promote the optional tour – half day Genting tour, Bingo card and the otak-otak.

We reach our destination at Genting Highlands First World hotel at 4pm. First World hotel has 3 towers with total of 7351 rooms. It is the largest hotel in the world took over the honor from The Venetian hotel from Las Vegas. I proceed to the counter to collect 15 room keys and 30 pieces of You Ya concert tickets. After room allocation, I pass the room keys and concert tickets to all the Singapore tourists. I return to my room which is allocated for tourists guide after 6pm. During these 2 nights, I will share room with another one tourist guide. We are informed to go down to 2^nd floor food court for dinner on travel agency boss expense. After dinner at 8.45pm, I go back to my room to rest. A busy day ended here. The second day will be a free and easy day.

The next day 8.30am, I go to Genting Highlands First World hotel lobby to meet with all the Singapore tourists that registered for half day Genting tour optional tour. This optional tour touring the places of interest including Chin Swee Cave temple, chocolate shop, far sightseeing strawberry farm (who want to enter the strawberry farm must purchase the strawberry) and enjoy lunch on own expense at the Genting half mountain. After all my tourists gathered and aboard the bus, I proceed to have my breakfast with tourist guide who share the room with me and another one senior tourist guide. We ate our breakfast at Genting Highlands staff’s canteen food court. By showing tourist guide license badge, we enjoy 25% of discount on all food there. My soup noodle which sells at RM8.50 sold to me at Rm6.50. At the end, we have our breakfast, lunch and dinner for the day at Genting Highlands food court there. The rest of the time, we explore Genting Highland under the guidance of senior tourist guide. We visited Arena of Stars, the most important place due to the You Ya concert which falls on the night and we need to bring our tourists there, casino, theme park hotel (formerly Highlands hotel), cable car station, visitor gallery and others.

7.30pm, all the tourists guide gather at Genting Highlands First World hotel lobby to arrange all their tourists to gather and follow the group to go to Arena of Stars lead by our tourist guide. There are 2 routes to go Arena of Stars: one is nearer but the pathway uncovered, another path fully covered for its entire walkway but more far. Due to heavy rain during the time, all the tourists have to follow the long route to get there. However, tourists can go there by taxi which cost RM10.

After all tourists reach and enter into Arena of Stars, all the tourists guide left. At first I intend to take the opportunity of gathering to inform my tourists the changes of return time, too bad only few tourists who follow the group to go Arena of Stars, most of the tourists go there by themselves. I borrowed a spare You Ya concert ticket and entering the Arena of Stars trying to locate my tourists, too bad the You Ya concert start when I go into there. I returned back and joined the rest of tourists guide to have our dinner together at Genting Highlands staff canteen food court. Over there, few tourists guide with over 10 years of experiences share their experiences. I learn a lot from them.

About 10.30pm, I saw many people started to return back to First World hotel from the Arena of Stars. The return path they took is a nearer path because there are clear sky and no rain. At the time, I was sitting outside the lobby coffee shop. I observe for a while and then I go to my Singapore tourists’ room to knock the door to inform them the timing change. I only manage to inform half of my tourists, the rest are still not return back to First World hotel room yet. Under a senior tourist guide suggestion, I write the notice at A4 paper, get the hotel counter service staff to photostat it and insert the paper into the room door. I also requested for morning call for all my tourists at 7.30am. When I return back to my room to rest, it is already 1am.

On the 3^rd day early morning, I wake up at 6am. I go to knock the door at 7am to those tourists that I fail to meet them before the day. At the end, only left 1 tourist that I failed to contact and inform about the changes of time. Around 7.30am, I joined the two tourist guide to have breakfast at Genting Highlands staff canteen. I myself already ate the Melilea organic powder and bread early morning, so I just accompany them. Around 8.45am, almost all tourists already gather at Genting Highland First World hotel lobby except 2 families. Finally and fortunately, all my Singapore tourists gathered at 9.10am. I proceed to call bus driver to come up to pickup us. Due to earlier notification to bus driver about the return timing, driver already standby there and it just take 2 minutes to reach the First World hotel pick up point.

When the entire luggages are put inside the bus luggage compartment and headcount done, we proceed our journey back to Singapore. There are 2 stopovers at native food shop at halfway mountain of Genting Highlands, Tangkak brown rice shop for tourists to visit and make purchase, and a drive through to Yong Peng Xiao Mei otak-otak store to collect the otak-otak that we are order earlier. We have our lunch at Seremban Yong Xiang Restaurant and our gala dinner at Maedo ballroom.

About 4.30pm, we reach Maedo which located at Skudai, Johor. 4.30pm is the timing arranged to start the gala dinner. However, there are still buses yet to reach Maedo. Due to not enough time, these buses not visit to Tangkak brown rice shop and even have bus not going to Yong Peng Xiao Mei otak-otak store, but request help from other tourist guide to collect it on behalf. After reach there, we guide our tourists to the table assigned to them. When the gala dinner started, most of the tourists guide including me proceed to old Maedo restaurant which located opposite the road to have our dinner. After dinner, I go back to our bus to pack the otak-otak for our tourists.

Gala dinner ended at 7.30pm. All the tourists guide standby at the Maedo ballroom exit to fetch them and guide them to the bus, then proceed to Sultan Abu Bakar Complex – Malaysia Second Link Customs. In the bus, I pass the three free 2 nights First World hotel voucher to 3 lucky tourists and tell them the voucher validity and how to book and present the free hotel voucher during check in. Around 8.45pm, we reach Sultan Abu Bakar Complex – Malaysia Second Link Customs. I inform all the tourists to just bring passport and important belonging to go down bus for Malaysia immigration and customs side, but need to bring everything belong to them including luggage and all the products they bought down together when at the Singapore Second Link Customs – Tuas Checkpoint. After all tourists return back to the bus and headcount done, I thank my tourists for the trip and say goodbye to them. After that, I cross over to another side of customs to take my bus to go back home.

About Genting Highlands

Genting Highlands, also known as Resorts World Genting, is a hill resort in Malaysia developed by Genting Group.

The hill resort is at an average elevation of 1,740 metres (5,710 ft) within the Titiwangsa Mountains on the border between the states of Pahang and Selangor of Malaysia. It is accessible by car from Kuala Lumpur in one hour, or also accessible by a cable car called Genting Skyway (3.38 kilometres)which at its opening was the world's fastest and South East Asia's longest gondola lift.

The idea of a hill resort located near Kuala Lumpur occurred to the late Tan Sri Lim Goh Tong during a business trip to the Cameron Highlands in 1964. He mooted this idea while enjoying the fresh and crisp air from the balcony of his hotel room. In 1971, the first hotel at Genting Highlands was successfully completed and was named Highlands Hotel (now renamed Theme Park Hotel). The Genting Highlands Resort continued to expand since the opening of the first hotel in 1971. Development of the area continued with care taken to ensure the maintenance of the natural beauty of the rainforest of the region. In 1997, Genting Highlands Resort added the Genting Skyway cable car system that provides a 3.38 kilometres transport to the hilltop. Genting Skyway is also recognised as the "World's Fastest Mono Cable Car System" with a maximum speed of 21.6 kilometres per hour (13.4 mph) and the "Longest Cable Car in Malaysia and Southeast Asia".

3rd job as tourist guide - Singapore - Malaysia Genting Highland transfer job

Today is my third job as tourist guide. It is a Singapore-Malaysia Genting Highland transfer job. This journey cause me feel gloomy of the day.

Our bus reached and departed from Sultan Abu Bakar Complex – Malaysia Second Link Customs at 8.30am. It took almost 2 hours from pick up point in Singapore at 6.30am to here, mostly due to Deepavali on Tuesday, which is a public holiday in Singapore and Malaysia. It is believed that many Singaporeans apply 1 day leave on Monday to enjoy 4 days long weekend holiday and travel out to Malaysia.

After 1 hour of journey, we saw the opposite direction highway was jammed. Take a look closer and found out that there is a small lorry carrying wooden planks blocked the road horizontally occupied 2 lane, the wooden planks were scattered on the road and the tyre was puncture. Lorry driver was sitting beside the road and look depressed.

Around 1.30pm, we are reaching to Ampang main road. When reaching there, the road condition started to congested. I asked the bus driver where is the location of Ampang Yong Tau Foo which is famous among Malaysian, Singaporean and tourists. Bus driver told me that later we will drive pass through the shop which is located besides the main road. Now we caught in jam mainly due to Ampang Yong Tau Foo. After pass through the Ampang Yong Tau Foo shop, the road condition will become smooth. After awhile, I heard a collision sound behind the bus and the bus driver immediately brake and stopped. Then there is a car beside our bus stop at right most highway lane and driver come out toward bus direction. Checking with bus driver what happened, he told me that the car was just try to change highway lane and knocked down 1 motorbike who takes the middle white line (middle of 2 highway lane) to surpass the bus and behind the motorbike is another motorbike who collide to the front motorbike. It is fortunate that bus driver stopped his bus immediately; otherwise the first motorbike driver who was knocked and fell down to the bus behind tyre side will be crushed over by bus tyre. He is really just escape from death and just light injury. Leaving it to settle themselves, we continue our journey to Genting Highland. The cloud started covering sky and rain pouring down.

When we reached Genting Highland First World hotel and Resort hotel at 3pm, there are in heavy rain. I took my umbrella and shelter them down from the bus to covered hotel area. After go to counter to collect my paycheck, we direct get on to bus and return back to Singapore. This time no return Singapore tourists in the bus, it is a empty run return. Due to no tourists in the bus, we do not stop at the Batu Caves local product shop, so we don’t have free meal.

The rain started to stop at the Genting Highland foothills after 1 hour of journey. Driving ahead for a while, we saw long jam again at the opposite direction highway. I expected it must be accident ahead. When get closer, I saw a ambulance stop over there, and a guy laid down on the road side. A plain white cloth was covering his body. It is really sad moment to see on the road. Except sighing the dangerous of the road, I can deeply felt that human life is really unpredictable and fragile.

We continue our journey back to Singapore. Most of the time on the road, the heavy rain is accompanying us. In Peninsular Malaysia East Coast, now is the raining monsoon starting November. When we reached Sultan Abu Bakar Complex – Malaysia Second Link Customs, the time is about 9pm. After quick clean up on every seats in the bus, I good bye with bus driver and move to another Singapore to Malaysia customs pickup point side to wait for bus to return home.

Festival Info

Deepavali, also called "festival of lights" is an ancient Hindu festival celebrated across the world every year. Deepavali is one of the largest and brightest festivals in India. The festival spiritually signifies the victory of good over evil and light over darkness. The symbolism of Deepavali is aptly summed up in the simple act of lighting an oil lamp. Hindu families will turn their homes into enclaves of warm golden light and they offer prayers, exchange gifts and share sweetmeats with each other. Deepavali is a national event in Malaysia and public holiday for both country, Singapore and Malaysia.